Strelow: Handling success next step for Wake Forest

The Demon Deacons, fresh off an 80-65 home win over then-No. 2 Miami, face Florida State in Tallahassee, Fla., on Tuesday at 9 p.m.

"Why don't we just rent a school bus, ride down to Tallahassee, leave now, get there at midnight, stop at Mickey D's along the way or something?" Bzdelik jokingly asked. "Let's just change it up totally."

Wake (12-14, 5-9 ACC) has improved gradually since Bzdelik took over the program before the 2010-11 season. The weekend win over a top-five team was a noteworthy breakthrough, but the Deacs have been adept at wasting good will. There's a chance it'll be gone by 9:15 p.m. on Tuesday.

Four days after fans stormed the Joel Coliseum court to celebrate a victory against N.C. State, Wake fell behind 16-0 at Georgia Tech. Four days after beating Florida State by 25 points at home, the Deacs were outscored 10-0 in the final two minutes of a 66-63 loss at Boston College.

Wake has played well in Winston-Salem, also defeating Virginia and putting a scare into Duke. The next necessary step for Bzdelik is making his team competitive on the road, and that means winning at least occasionally, regardless of the fact that seven freshmen are on the roster.

In the last five-plus seasons, including three at Colorado, Bzdelik's teams are 2-45 in conference road games. Earlier this month, following the two-game stretch in which Wake pushed Duke to the final minute before suffering a blowout loss at Maryland, Bzdelik said he hasn't been able to, "find a key to their emotions to have them be right for our next opponent."

The key, Bzdelik would agree, doesn't fit into a school bus ignition. It conveys the message of handling success properly and building off accomplishments. That requires maturity and a renewed sense of urgency.

"It's a work in progress in terms of understanding half this game is from the neck up," Bzdelik said.

Instilling a young team with confidence, but preventing it from becoming over-confident, is another challenge.

After squandering a chance to win at Boston College, Wake gave up a lead with 8.7 seconds left in its 57-56 home loss to Georgia Tech. Bzdelik noted how close the Deacs were to having a three-game winning streak during the week leading up to Miami's visit.

Instead of lacking confidence, Bzdelik said, have great confidence. Wake jumped out to a 42-23 lead against the Hurricanes, who start four seniors alongside junior Shane Larkin, before allowing Miami to close within five points. Wake senior C.J. Harris started a 12-0 run with a dunk, and freshmen accounted for the other 10 points.

Bzdelik offered that response as proof that his team is growing up.

"Sooner or later," freshman Devin Thomas told reporters, "it's going to be expected of us to win these games and not be a surprise."

Will Bzdelik still be around when that day arrives?

Fans who are convinced he's not the right coach for Wake aren't going to let a few high-profile, floor-storming victories change their mind. Two difficult, sometimes embarrassing seasons left Bzdelik facing what amounts to a 16-0 deficit on the road.

He's made progress, and the atmosphere inside Joel Coliseum has become livelier. Students and fans are more willing to show up when they believe their team has a realistic shot to win, and the Deacs have rewarded them.

Bzdelik deserves at least one more season to prove himself. Harris is a senior, but Travis McKie has another year of eligibility left, and the program includes two freshmen in Thomas and Codi Miller-McIntyre who appear capable of succeeding in leading roles.

Recruiting talented players is the most important part of building a strong program. Empowering them with a sense that they belong is another part of the process, and that's why Bzdelik believes the win over Miami can have big-picture ramifications.

"No question," he said. "How do you gain confidence? You have to have success and experiences and see it, feel it, enjoy it, handle it."

The Deacs have certainly enjoyed it. At Florida State, we'll see if they can finally handle it.

Staff writer Bret Strelow can be reached at strelowb@fayobserver.com or 486-3513.

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